Steven Lynch won the Wisden Cricket Monthly Christmas Quiz three years
running before the then-editor said "I can't let you win it again, but would
you like a job?" That lasted for 15 years, before he moved across to the
Wisden website when that was set up in 2000. Following the merger of the two
sites early in 2003 he was appointed as the global editor of Wisden
Cricinfo. In June 2005 he became the deputy editor of Wisden Cricketers'
Almanack. He continues to contribute the popular weekly "Ask Steven"
question-and-answer column on ESPNcricinfo, and edits the Wisden Guide to
International Cricket.

How many times have a pair of openers reached 50 in both innings of a Test, as Sri Lanka's did in Colombo?asked Savo Ceprnich from South Africa
That double by Sri Lanka's openers in their victory over South Africa in Colombo - Danushka Gunathilaka scored 57 and 61, and Dimuth Karunaratne 53 and 85 - was the 15th time a side's openers had both reached 50 in each innings of a Test. The previous instance was for Australia against Pakistanin Sydney in 2016-17, when Matt Renshaw scored 184 and David Warner 113 in the first innings, then Warner 55 and Usman Khawaja 79 not out in the second. (This is one of three occasions included in the 15 mentioned in which three men were involved, as there was a different opener in the second innings.)

Both captains took five-fors in the recent Test at Kingston. How unusual is this?asked Leroy Codrington from JamaicaJason Holder took 5 for 44 for West Indies in Kingston last week, then Shakib al Hasan returned the favour for Bangladesh with 6 for 33. This was only the second time in Test history that the rival captains had both claimed five wickets in an innings in the same match: it also happened in Dacca (now Dhaka) in 1958-59, when Richie Benaud took 5 for 93 for Australia and Fazal Mahmood 5 for 74 for Pakistan.

Holder added six more wickets in the second innings, and his final match figures of 11 for 103 were the eighth-best return by a captain in all Tests. It was only the 19th time a captain had taken ten or more in a match (Imran Khan did it four times, and Intikhab Alam twice). For the full list, click here.

What is the longest fourth innings in any Test match?asked Chris Harrison from England
The longest by far was the final innings of the famous Timeless Test in Durban in 1938-39. England's 654 for 5 - they were chasing 696 to win, but were thwarted by rain late on the tenth day - lasted 218.2 eight-ball overs, or 1746 legal deliveries (there were also three no-balls).

Next comes England's valiant effort against West Indies at Lord's in 1950: they only scored 274, but used up 191.3 overs (1149 balls). Sonny Ramadhin sent down 72 overs and Alf Valentine 71 in West Indies' victory.

The longest fourth innings to win a Test was Australia's 336 for 5 to beat South Africa in Durban in 1949-50, which lasted 123.6 eight-ball overs (990 deliveries). Australia pulled off a five-wicket victory despite being dismissed for 75 in their first innings.

Fakhar Zaman's recent 210 was the second highest unbeaten score of over 200 in ODIs AFP

Was Fakhar Zaman's 210 against Zimbabwe the highest not-out innings in a 50-over game?asked Irfan Ahmed from PakistanFakhar Zaman's onslaught for Pakistan against Zimbabwe in Bulawayo the other day was the 25th double-century in List A (senior one-day) cricket, and the 12th in which the batsman was not out at the end. Four of those were higher scores, including one in a one-day international: Martin Guptill smashed 237 not out for New Zealand against West Indies in Wellington in a 2015 World Cup quarter-final.

Apparently one of the competitors in the later stages of the British Open is the son of a Test cricketer. Who is it?asked Robin Norton from England
This golfer, a relative newcomer to the professional circuit, is Sean Crocker, who was born in Zimbabwe in August 1996 but now represents the United States. In his first Open Championship he did well to qualify for the final two rounds, and despite a disappointing final round of 76 at Carnoustie, eventually finished tied for 47th.

Sean's father is Gary Crocker, a combative allrounder who played three Tests and six one-day internationals for Zimbabwe, including their inaugural Test, against India in 1992-93, when he was a late call-up after an injury to another player, and had to drive through the night from his home in Bulawayo to Harare, around 275 miles (440km) away. In his first ODI, a few days after his Test debut and also against India in Harare, Crocker followed 4 for 26 with 50. At the time, only six others - including Viv Richards and Ian Botham - had reached a half-century and taken four wickets in the same ODI, although it has been repeated quite a few times since, including three instances by Chris Gayle and Shahid Afridi: for the full list, click here.